Window-shade guard



E'. V. N. TOMASULO. WINDOW SHADE GUARD.

. APPLICATION FILED FEB- I9 1920- I I 1,379,664. v atenmd May 31,1921.

Invenaar 711M 1% PM ATENT EPIFANIO V. N. TOMASULO, 0F CINCINNATI, OHIO.

WINDQW-SHADE GUARD.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 81, 1921.

Application filed February 19, 1920. Serial No. 359,789. I

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EPIFANIO V. N. TorrasULo, a subject of the King ofItaly, residing at Cincinnati in the county of Hamilton and State ofhio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Window- ShadeGuards, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to window-shades and the like, and the objects ofmy improvements are to prevent the edges of the shade from scrapingagainst the shade-brackets at the ends of the shade roller, therebyavoiding wrinkling, tearing and raveling of the shade material when theshade winds unevenly on the roller; and, preferably, to have theguarding element freely rotatable rela tively to both the shade-rollerand the shaderoller bracket, whereby the guarding element can partake asnearly as possible of the same lineal velocity as any port-ion of theshade edge frictionally contacting therewith at any stage of the windingor unwinding of the shade. Other objects will appear in the course ofthe ensuing description.

I attain these objects by the device illustrated, for example, in theaccompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is-a perspective view of a shadeequipped with my invention as I prefer to construct it;

F ig. 2 is an outside elevation of one of the guards;

Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the same on a plane corresponding to theline 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a perspective View corresponding to Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a similar view of the opposite side of the guard;

Fig. 6 is a vertical longitudinal section on a plane corresponding tothe line 6-6 of Fig. 1, middle parts being omitted-for lack of space,and the shade being represented as running up on the guard;

Fig. 7 is a similar section, but including the left end only, andshowing a modification of the guard;

Fig. 8 is a section corresponding to Fig. 3, but showing anothervmodification of the guard; and

Fig. 9 is a section corresponding to Fig. 7, showing anothermodification of the guard, and, associated therewith, a modifiedbracket.

My invention involves the use of the ordinary well known shade-roller 1and shade 2, hav ng at the left end the detent stud 3 PlOJGCUDP; fromthe spring motor mechanism mounted in the shade-roller as usual. but notherein shown, and at the other end the spindle l. Any shade rolleranswering to this description may be used. and also. as shown in F 1 to7. the ordinary brackets 5 and 6 are used at the left and right ends,respectively, of the roller 1; the left-hand bracket 5 having the slot 7cut down from its top to the center of the forward part of the bracket,with the slight shoulder 8., to receive and hold non-rotatable thedetent stud 3 of the roller, and the right-hand bracket 6 having theinwardly entending circular boss 9 with the central opening circular toreceive the roller spindle 1 for free rotation, as usual. Such bracketsare atached to the window frames or the like by means of theirperforated bases 10 as shown in Big. 1; or, under some conditions, areattached through holes 11 in the forward part of the bracket, as seen inthe left-hand bracket in 1. There are variations of these brackets; andit will be understood that my invention is not limited to use with anyparticular bracket or shade-roller mechanism.

My improved guard, in its preferred form, as shown in Figs. 1 to 6,inclusive, is a sheet-metal cup 12 with its rim 13 radially extended allaround, and with the annular flange 14: turned down from the outer edgeof the rim 13 all around, forming the periphery of the guard. Theformation is thus described to make it more readily understood; inpractice, such a cup is drawn into the described shape at a singleopera- 12 will slip readily over the end of the shaderoller 1 and theopening 15 will receive loosely the detent-stud 3 or the spindle 4,

accordingly as the guard is the one on the left-hand or the right-handend of the roller; and preferably the opening 15 is large enough toallow the guard to bear partly on the shade-roller convex surface withthe inner surface of the cup wall, and partly on the stud 3 or pindle 1,as the case may be,

with the edge of the opening 15. This holds the guard approximatelycoaxial with the shade-roller 1, but the looseness of its mountingpermits it to rotate very freely, whether it be on the angular stud 3 orthe IOllllCl' spindle t; and the partial restingon the shade-rollerendpart may cease upon operation of the device, as the guard is pushed to amore nearly coaxial relation to the shaderoller. I

l/Vith the two guards, alike at both ends of the roller, thus on theroller, the roller is mounted in its brackets 5 and 6 in the usual wellknown manner; the relatively thin cupbottom part of the guard readilylying loosely in the slight space always left between the shade-rollerends and the respective adjacent brackets 5 and 6, in correct mountingof window shades in the well known manner.

Preferably, the junction corner between the rim 13 and flange 14, at 16,is rounded to an ample radius; while the outer edge 17 of this flange 14is discontinued short of the outer face plane of the cup-bottom part.These provisions better insure the smooth working of the device; thefirst avoiding cutting of the shade if it climbs onto the guard, as inFig. 6, and the second avoiding contact of the raw edge 17 with thebrackets 5 and 6 behind the roller 1.

In the modification of Fi 7 the guard is the same aswas just described,except that its rim .13 is turned down so as to present a convex surfaceinwardly toward the shade edge, and the flange 14 turned down from theouter edge of this convex rim 13 is correspondingly narrower. Such aformation may, under some conditions, better prevent climbing of theshade onto the periphery of the guard.

In the example of Fig. 8, the guard is a hollow disk, with one circularface 12" having the small opening 15 in its center, like the opening 15of the other examples, and with its opposite circular face 13" havingthe larger circular opening 12 substantially f the diameter of the cupinterior in the preceding examples, and located centrally of the disk.he outer shell or peripheral part 14: joins the part 13 by an amplecurve at the junction corner 16; and joins the other part 12 through acurved junction corner 17 that may be of any desired radius, so thatthis part of this guard may be smoother than the edge 17 of thepreceding example, avoiding cutting of the shade if it runs extremelyfar over the guard. This latter occurrence is not frequent, however; andthis hollow-disk-shaped guard is more diflicult to form of sheet metalthan the open cup formation of Figs. 1 to 6, or of Fig. 7.

In Fig. 9 the bracket 5 is similar to the ordinary bracket 5 of thepreceding examples, but' its outstanding part 18 is circular and ofabout the diameter of the modified guard. This latter comprises theinner circular face part 19 and the peripheral part 20, joined by; thecorner part 16 of ample radius, with the outer edge 17 of thisperipheral part 20 very close to and covered by flange 25 that is turnedout at the outer end of the sleeve 21. This permits the cupshaped partto rotate on the sleeve independently of the shade roller and of thebracket. It will be understood that the circular shape of the bracket 5is not essential, and this special bracket may be dispensed with and theordinary bracket used with the guard ust described. Also, it will beunderstood that the right-hand bracket may be special with the circularpart like the bracket 5*, or may be the ordinary right-hand bracket; andthe guard at the right end will be identical with the left-hand guardjust described, and merely inversely positioned.

This bracket, with an extension to cover the open outer side of thecup-shaped guard element, is equally applicable to the preferred guardsof Figs. 1 to 6, or to that of Fig. 7. But in none of the examples is itessential the principal use being to afford a more finished ap aearanceto the installation than where the hollow inside of the guard elementmay be seen from the side of the window. Other guards or brackets withclosed or covered outer sides are disclosed and claimed in my co-pendingapplication, Serial No. 356,199, filed February a, 1920, in which theexample of Fig. 9 was also originally disclosed and claimed.

In any of the examples, the smooth inner sides of the guard elementsavoid wrinkling, tearing or ra'veling of the shade edges when the shaderuns unevenly to the right or left in winding up under the action of theshaderoller mechanism, and in unwinding also, under some conditions.Even if the shade edges climb over these smooth inner sides theyencounter the smooth rounded corners and the smooth peripheral surfaces,from which the shade edges quickly slide back into their proper pathsbetween the two guards.

' It will be understood that any of the guard elements may be flat asshown, or con vex as shown in Fig. 7, on their inner sides next to theshade edges. This convexity may be desirable under some conditions,but

I have found in practice that the flat inner faces serve practically aswell as convex faces ordinarily; and especially is this so when'theguard is allowed to freely rotate at approximately the lineal velocityof the shade edge at any time the edge contacts with the fiat innerface. The convex face facilitates return of the shade to its properpath, once the shade has for any reason ridden over the guard; but theflat face tends to prevent this riding over entirely. Free rotation ofthe guard relatively to the shaderoller as well as to the bracket isbest for these purposes, because as the shade accumulates on the roller,the diameter becom ing greater, the shade travels at a greater linealvelocity than any part of the shade to which the guard can be attached;so that when fixed to the shade the disproportion between the shade andguard lineal velocities increases as the shade accumulates in thewinding-up operation. With the guard free to rotate, either on theshade-roller proper, as in Fig. 9, or partially thereon and partially onthe detent-stud 3, spindle l, or other means near the end of the roller,according to the design and construction thereof, or else wholly on thisprojection, the guard may increase its speed to approximately that ofthe shade edge contacting therewith at any stage of the rolling-up, andthe disparity of velocity and consequent friction and disruptiveinfluence of the guard on the shade edge are minimized.

In any case, whatever be the relation of the guard to the roller, therelatively broad periphery of the guard, without any sharp angles oredges presented directly to an over-running part of the shade, almostcompletely avoids the cutting and abrasive action that will occur withmerely a thin guard or guide disk at or upon the end of theshade-roller, which thin disk will receive the over-running shade parton its con1- paratively sharp periphery and act as'a cutter thereon.Such a cutting action with such a thin disk or guide is especiallyaggravated if the guide or disk is not allowed to turn relatively to theshade-roller, because the cutting action is so much more severe due tothe increasing disparity between the shade and guide lineal velocities.

Numerous examples have been given of embodiments of my invention, all ofwhich have been explicitly illustrated and described, but furthermodifications may oc cur under different conditions, as withshaderollers different from that herein used for example, or indifierent windows, or for other reasons, and therefore, while certainconstructional details are deemed preferable in connection with myinvention, and I have shown and described these specifically inelucidating the construction and use of my invention, as is required, Ido not wish to be understood as being limited to such precise showingand description, but having thus fully described my invention, what Iclaim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In combination with a window-shade, its roller, and the rollerbracket, a guard element mounted near an end of said roller, betweensaid shade and said bracket, said guard element being normally free torotate relatively to said roller and said bracket.

2. In combination with a window-shade, its roller, and the rollerbracket, a guard element mounted near an end of said roller, betweensaid shade and said bracket, said guard element being normally free torotate relatively to said roller and said bracket and having ashade-edge-conserving periphery.

3. In combination with a window-shade, its roller, and the rollerbracket, a cupshaped guard element mounted between the roller andbracket normally free for rotation relatively to the roller and bracket,and extending over the adjacent end of the roller and presenting ashade-edge-conserving surface toward the shade edge, and having ashade-edge-conserving periphery.

EPIFANIO V. N. TOMASULO.

